Materials Chemistry and Physics, Vol.222, 377-383, 2019
Mathematical modeling of oxygen transfer in porous scaffolds for stem cell growth: The effects of porosity, cell type, scaffold architecture and cell distribution
Oxygen plays a key role in human mesenchymal stem cell growth. Without adequate oxygen (hypoxic condition), cells are not able to survive, proliferate, and migrate. The objective of the present study is to investigate oxygen transfer through the cell-seeded scaffolds stored in static or dynamic bioreactors using a mathematical model. The effects of porosity, cell type, scaffold architecture and cell distribution as potential effective parameters on oxygen transfer kinetics were examined. The results suggest the substantial effect of porosity and cell type on the oxygen concentration within the scaffold compared to scaffold architecture (homogeneous vs. gradient). The obtained data show that the direction of oxygen transfer in deep regions with dead cells changes over time and reverse mass transfer allows the cells to nourish from both top and bottom layers. Finally, the extent of oxygen transfer in static bioreactors/cultures was compared to dynamic ones. The results show that dynamic bioreactors have a better performance and are more efficient for oxygen transfer.